Japanese peace envoy to hold talks with Tigers amid unrest

Japan’s special peace envoy is to hold talks with Tamil Tiger rebels as the Sri Lankan government pressed the guerrillas to return to the negotiating table to halt the spiral of violence. Yasushi Akashi left for the rebel-held town of Kilinochchi, 330 kilometres (200 miles) north of here in a Sri Lankan military helicopter to meet with Tiger political wing chief S. P. Thamilselvan, diplomats said. Akashi, who helped raise some 4.5 billion dollars in aid to support the island’s Norwegian-backed peace process in June 2003, held talks with President Mahinda Rajapakse on Monday. Full Story

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